When We Learn!

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly. The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good. The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit. A fool spurns a parent’s discipline, but whoever heeds correction shows prudence. The house of the righteous contains great treasure, but the income of the wicked brings ruin. The lips of the wise spread knowledge, but the hearts of fools are not upright.  Proverbs 15:1-7 NIV

Though many may mock proverbs’ lessons,

Wisdom arriving late is better than never.

Keeping thoughts focused on the task at-hand,

Reins in the tongue and zips the lips before they speak.

What fills our hearts from within–

Bigotry, hate, empathy, sympathy, love

Flowing from beneath or showering from above.

Better to be slow to speak

And quick to listen, getting the facts

And forgetting the fiction.

Understanding that once words flow through the air,

There’s no going back, and all criticism is fair.

When we learn–that life is not just about us,

But the environment in which we  live

And those in whom we trust.

When we learn to exercise prudence and wisdom

In all we do, we’ll set the table for peace and harmony,

Respecting all we meet and greet with no acrimony,

But heralding love–enduring and unconditional–

Receiving, enjoying all of God’s best–mercy and grace

Not withering attacks from afar–and not in our face,

But remembering “The Golden Rule” from the first,

Treating others like we treat ourselves or better.

When we learn!

 

 

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Watch Your Mouth!

Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21 NKJV

James reminds us that the tongue–that little member–holds much power and the only person who controls it–is the person to whom it belongs.

With the tongue we can mend relationships or destroy them forever.

With the tongue we can construct greatness or ignite destruction.

With the tongue we can have peace or chaos.

With the tongue we can create an environment that brings about prosperity or fuel abject poverty.

With the tongue we can speak life–to our bodies and promote healing and wholeness or we can doom ourselves to sickness and disease.

With the tongue–we are responsible for all we say and we must watch what we say because once we say it–we cannot recall words out of the air as easily as we can recall cars that need repair. When we are foolish–we can apologize and ask forgiveness, but it doesn’t take away the sting and hurt of words that linger in the air and in our minds. We must watch our mouths.

When we speak positive things–our words are not often remembered, but the negative things we say, are remembered by others long after we have forgotten what we said.

We have an obligation to ourselves and others to make sure that before we speak, we have prayed and given much thought to how we want our tongues to function. We are to be slow to speak and quick to listen to all God has to say to us and if we listen and obey, we cannot go astray.

Watch your mouth! Think about how words function–to heal or hurt, to spring life or trip to death, the tongue–the tiny member over which we have complete control–must submit to God and only say those things that He says.

We are healed and whole, peacemakers and not peacebreakers, the head and not the tail, providers of those in need and not  manipulators of greed. We are His children, members of a royal priesthood, created to do good, not bad and we shall praise Him for His mighty acts as we live according to His Word so others might see our good works and praise Him,too.

We have shaken off the deeds of darkness and choose to live in the marvelous light of The Lord. We are encouragers to others to live by faith and will not discourage any to live the life God has destined for them.

We are more than conquerors and have victory in Jesus at every turn where the enemy has laid a snare.

We live according to the hope we have in Jesus, not in expectations of mere mortals for they have no power outside of His power to make a positive, lasting, difference in our lives. And we will watch what we say–speaking only as He speaks–so we can obtain what He has already planned for us.

Why Faith In God? Part 3

“Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done.” (Matthew 21:21 NIV) “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” (Romans 10:10 NIV)

Notice how important it is to use “our mouths” to proclaim our faith. Jesus said, “You can say…” and Paul tells us, “With your mouth you profess your faith…” So, conversely, if we don’t “say” we won’t see our faith exercised or receive what we won’t say. This is why it is important for us to watch those things we say. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” We can use our tongues which are in our mouths–to speak life to our lives with our faith in God or we can speak death to our lives with negative confessions, expressing doubt. It’s up to us–remember–according to our faith–it will be what we say it will be.

Understanding the power we have with our tongues and expression of our faith, why would we contribute to having no ability to do anything worthwhile for others?

We can exercise our faith in God, by saying–“No weapon formed against us shall prosper” when we get that negative report from doctors. “By His stripes, I am healed.”  “There is no name above the name of Jesus,” and sickness and disease have names that are covered under the blood. And then we do everything we can to live a healthy life. There is no point in saying something, just to say it, now we have something we need to do.

We don’t have to be afraid of anything, so when the enemy attempts to ignite fear in us, we say “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind” and then move out in the power of His might!

We never have to accept defeat in any endeavor when we say, “I am more than a conqueror through Him who loves me,” and then keep trying to accomplish whatever it is we’re trying to accomplish, until we do it right.

We can have what we say, when we refuse to allow negativity to enter into our minds and we keep professing we have what it is we need, no matter what things look like. Don’t allow what you see to determine what you speak! God created the world in seven days and there is nothing too hard for Him to do for those He loves and for those who complete faith is in Him!

Hallelujah, Jesus! Thanking Him for our needs being met, over and above anything we need so we will have surplus to assist others. Thanking Him for healing bodies with the same healing virtue used to heal the woman with the issue of blood. Thanking Him for protecting the vulnerable, and comforting hearts, and speaking to the hearts of those who commit evil. We may not see it the evidence, but we can rest assured that God hears us and knows everything about everything.

The one thing He will not do–is force anyone to do anything they do not want to do. So, while our faith in God is assured, we must also know that He gives free-will choice to the saved and unsaved, leaving all to the consequences of their choices.

Part 4 tomorrow!